virtualbox.org

I have downloaded the Intel/AMD installer twice both times with the same result. After installation, VBox can't find the VBoxGuestAdditions.iso file. I've searched for it manually and can not find it. Any clues?

Can you explain this better? When and how does VirtualBox tell you it can not find the addition.iso? Was it after the upgrade and when you tried to start the VM for the first time?
If so then it is more than likely because the addition.iso was still mounted to the VM and since it is deleted and replaced with the new one that error would popup.
If this is the case all you need to do is unmount the CD in the guest settings. Then once you start the guest go to the devices tab and click on install guest additions.

Your installation folder probably changed and the GA ISO is still registered from the old location. Unregister it, then hit the Install GA menu option. It should get mounted from the proper location.

With 3.0.6, the default location for the GA iso file changed for Win hosts. It is now:

C:\Program Files\Sun\VirtualBox\VBoxGuestAdditions.iso

I had to go into Virtual Media Manager and remove the old one and add the new iso file. This problem should be fixed in the next Vbox release.

rasta wrote:With 3.0.6, the default location for the GA iso file changed for Win hosts. It is now:

C:\Program Files\Sun\VirtualBox\VBoxGuestAdditions.iso

I had to go into Virtual Media Manager and remove the old one and add the new iso file. This problem should be fixed in the next Vbox release.

Why should it be fixed? If you upgraded each installation from older versions, you would have gotten the same problem. Versions prior to 1.6.0 were installed in C:\Program Files\Innotek\VirtualBox, =>1.6.0 became C:\Program Files\Sun\xVM VirtualBox, and now it's back to C:\Program Files\Sun\VirtualBox. Every big change to the company changed the install folder, and the media manager didn't change the registration with it, resulting in the same error as people are having now. The only difference is that VB now no longer gives a fatal error about it. Live with it, it's not a fatal problem, nor a bug. It's just something that happens when programs change their name, and thus the installation location. What's so hard in removing the GA ISO from the Media Manager and add it again using the Device > Install GA menu from a running VM?

Obviously, nothing is hard about it. It just creates some momentary confusion for users, as shown in this thread.

Users should get a warning about missing files in the Media Manager, if they didn't tick the ignore box before. After that, they can hit Check, spot the missing file (which is the GA ISO) and unregister it.

Well to add fuel to this fire VB's VM manager will NOT let me release to iso from it's old location!!!!

"Failed to unmount the CD/DVD image C:\PROGRA~1\Sun\XVMVIR~1\VBoxGuestAdditions.iso from the machine Ubuntu 9.04.
The machine is not mutable (state is 2)."


Now what?

The VM that holds the ISO is in saved state. That's the problem.

When upgrading from 3.0.4 to 3.0.8 (in my case), which should be a minor release,
they arbitrarily changed the default program location from
C:\Program Files\Sun\xVM VirtualBox
to
C:\Program Files\Sun\VirtualBox
for no apparent reason, breaking existing virtual machines. The error message tells you that "C:\PROGRA~1\Sun\XVMVIR~1\VBoxGuestAdditions.iso" can't be found but offers no clue how to remedy the problem.

It's inexplicable why the programmers, knowing that this would break every virtual machine out there, failed to include a migration path and a clear reference to it in the error message rather than forcing all users to duplicate the process wasting valuable time diagnosing and troubleshooting this.

Here's how I fixed mine: Before starting the virtual machine, uninstall the Guest Additions by going into the Settings menu, CD/DVD-ROM. I had to forst "release" it then "remove" it. Not real intuitive. Then reinstall Guest Additions the usual way.